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About

SPACE is a multi-disciplinary art center that promotes the arts and humanities through advocacy, programming, commissioning, statewide grantmaking, resource-sharing, and community collaboration. We work inside our home at 534-538 Congress Street, outside with public art and programming initiatives, statewide through our regranting programs, and (inter)nationally within our professional and artistic networks. 

Founded in 2002, SPACE is a launchpad for ideas, an ever-evolving creative resource, and a coalition of values-based artists building a safe(r) space, performing arts venue, gallery, and maker hub in southern Maine. 

We envision our organization as a bridge: between artist-led and curatorial presentation practices, connecting disparate geographies and audiences, and as a pathway to new conversations. Download the Executive Summary of our Strategic Plan.


Mission Statement

SPACE is a nonprofit organization that supports contemporary arts projects, champions artists, and encourages an open exchange of ideas.

Grounded in the belief that vital communities are activated by experimentation, conversation, and camaraderie, SPACE engages a wide audience with provocative arts programming and category-defying events. As a nexus for curious minds, we collaborate with original thinkers and invite the public to participate in the ongoing pursuit of adventurous ideas.

Illustration of SPACE's building, the Durant Block. Black outline on red backdrop.

From our versatile home at 534-538 Congress Street, we:

  • Curate visual art exhibitions
  • Showcase music
  • Present film screenings
  • Facilitate lectures and discussions
  • Foster a platform for contemporary experimental performance
  • Rent below-market studios to artists with active practices
  • Oversee a statewide granting program for artist-led initiatives and projects
  • Invite national artists to stay in Portland through our residency program
  • Encourage conversations about issues of social justice
  • Engage the public in community events and open forums
  • Collaborate with other nonprofits, artist-run projects, and performing arts organization.

Selected Press


SPACE Values & Community Agreements

Please find our Safe(r) SPACE policy and Community Agreements for our facilities here. Our suggestions for language repair are here.

Artist-centered: We are here to provide resources, time, energy, and a visible platform to realize original artistic visions. We delight in the fluidity and multidisciplinary nature of our programming and by working with artists, we cultivate joy and amplify play. 

Intentional Welcome: We strive for everyone to feel welcome at and invited to SPACE. SPACE will continually address accessibility accommodations, refining inclusive tactics, and commit to future facilities upgrades. 

Prioritizing Respect: We provide our staff and artists with an environment of dignity and respect. We work to create a gathering environment and facilities that are anti-racist, equitable, safe, and fair. 

Mutual Growth: We create a platform for work that is experimental and opens conversation. We understand that engaging with uncomfortable work can be a site for reflection and growth in our community. Internally, we are committed to a constant process of transformation and improvement. 

Future-forward: We embrace contemporary art as a means of exploring new futures and a tool for building dynamic, interconnected communities.

We are always open to feedback and are invested in accountability. Please use our Community Feedback Form to share your thoughts with us, thank you!

—SPACE Staff


Support SPACE

Do you want to support our mission?

Kindly click “donate”, consider signing up to volunteer, and/or work with your organization or business to sponsor a program/event/initiative. We offer calendar advertisements for small business sponsors. SPACE welcomes in-kind donations of food, drink, products relevant to our programs, gently used equipment or furniture, and relevant technology and production gear of any kind. Please email if us, ask our staff at an event, or call us if you have an idea of how you can make our work go!

In 2023, SPACE has received generous funding from The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, The National Endowment for the Arts, The Mellon Foundation, New England Foundation for the Arts, Onion Foundation, Davis Family Foundation, Kirby Family Foundation, Moser Family Foundation, Wescustogo Foundation, Ann H. Symington Foundation, Old Bug Light Charitable Foundation, Algar Foundation, Horizon Foundation, Samuel L. Cohen Foundation, and an additional list of private foundations and individual members and donors who champion arts, artists, and ideas.

We are grateful for these valuable community and philanthropic partners who make our mission a reality. Check out our 2022 Annual Report.

Mission